Rise of the Undead Box Set | Books 1-3 | Apocalypse Z

by Higgins, Baileigh

  Saul inched closer to the enclosed lab, taking expert shots. Lieutenant King and his men flanked him, and together they dropped the last of the zombies. A curious silence settled over the lab, and Dylan sagged with exhaustion. Nick slumped down next to her, breathing hard, and they shared a triumphant look.

  “I can’t believe we made it,” Dylan said.

  “Me neither,” Nick admitted, wiping a hand across his face. Blood smeared his skin and splattered his uniform, and she surmised she looked much the same. “What a day.”

  Saul picked his way through the corpses and began shifting those that blocked the lab’s door. A couple of the soldiers moved to help him, and soon they’d cleared a path. Dylan grabbed Nick’s hand and dragged him through the pile of bodies until they reached the door.

  She waited with growing impatience for Lieutenant King to unlock using a key card and password. They could’ve climbed through the broken window, but Dylan didn’t fancy clambering over a dozen dead infected. When the door slid open, she exited with a sigh of relief. “Thank you, Lieutenant King.”

  His pale eyes flickered from her to Sergeant Dean. “Don’t mention it.”

  He turned and walked away, signaling the rest of the unit to follow. Dylan fell in beside Saul and quizzed him. “What took you so long?”

  “I’m sorry, but we were in a different part of the lab and had to fight our way here,” Saul said, his expression somber.

  “I’m just glad you made it. I thought we were going to die in there,” Dylan said with a big grin on her face.

  Saul shot her a strange look. “You have no idea.”

  “Um, okay?” Dylan said, but she was soon distracted by something else. “Who’s that?”

  She pointed to a stranger that walked behind the Lieutenant. The man wore a grimy lab coat and walked with a shuffle. His glasses were perched on the end of his nose, and his thinning hair was greasy and shiny with oil. It was apparent he hadn’t bathed in days.

  “That’s a scientist. We found him barricaded inside the kitchens,” Saul said.

  Dylan gasped. “He’s been here all this time? Poor guy.”

  Saul nodded. “Lucky for him, Tara arrived at the base, or he’d have died in here if the major had his way.”

  “What about the rest of the lab?” Dylan asked. She patted her vest. “I’m all out of ammo. Nick too.”

  “Don’t worry about it. It’s clear. Lieutenant King will send in another unit to sweep the place for stragglers, but the worst is over.”

  “It’s over? We can get out of here?” Dylan asked.

  “That’s right. We’re done,” Saul said.

  “Thank God,” Dylan said, her relief genuine.

  “You can say that again,” Nick said, looping a casual arm around her shoulder. “Let’s get out of here.”

  Chapter 15 - Tara

  Tara shifted from one foot to the other while she waited for the team to emerge from the lab. All morning, she’d sat on a chair and watched the entrance. She hardly dared go for a bathroom break or even a glass of water for fear of missing something.

  When the shooting began, distant and muffled, her heart nearly stopped. It carried on like that throughout the long hours, and by the time they came out, it felt like she’d run a marathon.

  She stood on tiptoe as the doors opened and cried out with joy when she spotted Saul. Dylan and Nick followed him, and not one of them appeared to be injured. As they neared the tent, she almost threw herself at them but restrained herself at the last minute. “Saul, Dylan, Nick. You made it!”

  Saul reached out to hug her, but she raised a hand to forestall him. “Sorry, my love. Decontamination first, hugs and kisses second.”

  His face fell, but he managed a rueful smile. “Show us the way.”

  Before Tara could move a muscle, however, a familiar voice greeted her. One she never thought she’d hear again. “Dr. Lee. I can’t believe you’re here. I never thought I’d see you again. Not in this lifetime, at least.”

  She whirled around, and she gasped when she recognized her superior. “Dr. Bannock!”

  “Indeed. I see you are every bit as surprised as I am,” he replied with a raised eyebrow. “A happy surprise, I hope?”

  “Of course,” Tara managed to say while she stared at him, a million different thoughts running through her mind. “You were inside the lab this entire time?”

  “Yes, I’ve been a prisoner of its walls these past few weeks.” He frowned. “Has it been weeks? I confess I lost track of time. It certainly felt like a long time, but I suppose it could’ve been days.”

  Tara shook her head, running the calculations in her head. “No, you’re right, doctor. It’s been about two weeks, maybe more.”

  “I see.” He smoothed his hands over his stained and wrinkled lab coat. “I’m afraid I require a grooming session. Bathing was a luxury not afforded to me while I was trapped.”

  “How did you survive in there all this time?” she asked.

  “I barricaded myself into the kitchen. There was enough food and water to last me a while. Even so, I’d all but given up hope of rescue when the soldiers showed up.”

  “You’re lucky to be alive,” Tara said.

  “I am, and I’m very grateful to be standing here today, especially in such illustrious company.” Dr. Bannock accompanied his words with a broad smile.

  Tara stared at him, taken aback. This was a side of Bannock she’d never seen before. A warm, friendly Bannock. Maybe his ordeal changed him? Gave him some sort of epiphany?

  She was pulled from her thoughts by Lieutenant King. He approached her with his rifle in one hand and his helmet in the other. “Dr. Lee. Forgive my intrusion, but can we begin with the decontamination, please? My men are tired and hungry. The sooner we can get out of here, the better.”

  “Of course,” Tara agreed, feeling sheepish. It was an emotion she despised, and one that Bannock always seemed to bring out in her. “This way.”

  Tara spent the next hour taking the Lieutenant, his team, and Dr. Bannock through the process of decontamination. Upon completion, they were passed onto Ethan, who gave each a thorough examination and drew blood for testing.

  The examination served a dual purpose. It was to check for injuries and to make sure no one had been bitten by a zombie. The last thing any of them needed was for the Vita virus to sneak its way into the population. The blood Ethan drew would be tested against the diseases studied inside the lab to ensure none of the unit had contracted any of them.

  Saul, Dylan, and Nick were last to go through the process. After they’d passed through both her and Ethan’s hands, she met them outside the medical tent.

  “Where’s that kiss you promised me?” Saul asked, and Tara happily obliged. “By the way, is that Dr. Bannock? Your superior in the Congo?”

  “That’s the one.”

  “I can’t believe it. Of all people, to find him inside that kitchen,” Saul mused with a faraway look on his face.

  “Listen, guys. We need to talk. There’s some serious shit going down in this place,” Dylan interrupted, and they all turned to look at her.

  “What do you mean?” Tara asked.

  “I almost died today, and so did Nick,” Dylan said. “And it wasn’t because of the zombies. Okay, it was kind of, but not really. I —”

  “What she means to say is that she was deliberately separated from the group by one of the soldiers,” Nick said. “If it weren’t for the fact that I saw her running off, she’d be dead now.”

  “One of the soldiers?” Saul asked with a deep frown. “I meant to ask you what happened. One moment you’re there, and the next you’re radioing from the other side of the lab.”

  “Do you know which soldier it was?” Tara asked.

  “I’ll know him when I see him again,” Dylan said, “but I didn’t get a name.”

  “This is very serious, Dylan. It means that they’re not just trying to discredit you, but actually kill you,” Tara added.

&n
bsp; “There’s something else, too,” Saul said.

  “There’s more?” Tara asked.

  “Yes, but I’d rather talk about it somewhere private. There are too many ears around here,” Saul said.

  “I vote that we meet up at your house as soon as possible,” Nick suggested. “The doctor too.”

  “Not today,” Tara said. “You’re all exhausted and need to rest. Besides, both Ethan and I are working late.”

  “Working late?” Saul asked. “What for?”

  “Major Reed is sending in another team to sweep the building for stragglers. After that, a clean-up crew is going in to clear the bodies. We have to stay here until they’re done,” Tara explained.

  “That could take all day,” Saul said. “Maybe even all night.”

  “I know, but I don’t have a choice,” Tara said.

  “What about tomorrow morning then?” Nick asked. “We could meet around breakfast time? Say seven?”

  “That sounds good,” Tara agreed.

  “In the meantime, I’ll find out who was all on Lieutenant King’s team today. If Dylan can identify the culprit, we’ll be one step closer to fixing this mess,” Nick said.

  “Or, I could just pack my stuff and leave,” Dylan said. “That would solve everyone’s problems.”

  “You don’t know that, Dylan,” Tara argued. “They could be after all of us.”

  “Fine, we can talk about it over breakfast,” Dylan agreed.

  “Great. I’ll see you in the morning,” Tara said.

  After saying goodbye, Tara watched Saul, Dylan, and Nick walk away. A million questions churned through her brain, raised by the events of the day. Even worse, she had no answers to any of them. With a sense of growing unease, she turned back to the decontamination tent, but Dr. Bannock spotted her and hurried over.

  “Dr. Lee. One moment please,” he said.

  With reluctance, Tara waited for him to catch up. The sight of his face roused a familiar set of feelings within her. Frustration, anxiety, inferiority, and rage. She couldn’t afford to show her hand, however. Whatever Dr. Bannock might be, he was her superior and higher up on the ladder of USAMRIID. If he wanted to, he could kick her out of the lab.

  “Yes, Dr. Bannock?”

  “I spoke to one of the men now, and I heard the most extraordinary thing,” he said.

  “What would that be?” Tara asked though she had her suspicions already.

  “That you had somehow discovered a cure to the Vita virus,” he continued. “Why didn’t you say so earlier?”

  “It didn’t seem important at the time. Not after the trauma you suffered,” Tara said with a false smile. Inside, she seethed with red-hot anger. She hadn’t missed the doctor’s emphasis on the word somehow. What does he mean somehow? There was no somehow involved in the months of work that I put in. The thousands of hours I slaved over blood samples and print-outs.

  “That’s understandable. Yet, now that I know, I look forward to being briefed in full on your progress,” he continued. “Perhaps, with our combined expertise, we can even develop a vaccine.”

  “That was the plan, Sir,” Tara said, her cheeks aching from the fake smile she had to present.

  “Yes, my dear, but now that I am here, imagine how much faster it will go,” he said, his words dripping with sugary acid.

  “Of course,” Tara replied, inclining her head. “I look forward to working with you.”

  “Excellent,” he said, before looking over her shoulder and waving at someone. “Now, I really must go. I’m in sore need of a hot bath, clean clothes, and a decent meal. We can catch up later.”

  Dr. Bannock walked away, and Tara stared at his retreating back with all of the rage and hatred she could summon. With his last words, Bannock had tipped his hand. He hadn’t changed, after all. He was simply putting on an act for the benefit of others. He’s after my work. He wants to save the world and be hailed as a hero.

  Chapter 16 - Bannock

  Dr. Bannock was escorted to the offices of Major Reed by Lieutenant King. Along the way, he smoothed his hands over his clothes and hair. He wanted to make the right impression when he met the man in charge of operations. As ever, ambition was his driving force, his reason for living, and he intended to take full advantage of any opportunities presented to him.

  They entered after a brief knock on the door, and the major greeted him with his hand extended. “Dr. Bannock, I don’t believe we’ve met before. I’m Major Owen Reed, and this is Lieutenant King, my right-hand man.”

  “Lieutenant King and I have met. He and his men were the ones to save me, after all,” Dr. Bannock said.

  “Yes, of course. I forgot about that,” Major Reed said. “Please, be seated, and I trust you’ve been taken care of since your rescue?”

  “I have, thank you. It’s amazing what a hot shower and a good meal can do for one’s state of mind.”

  “Agreed,” the major said, sitting down behind his desk.

  “May I ask as to the nature of this meeting, Sir?” Dr. Bannock asked.

  “I asked you here to talk about Dr. Lee.”

  “Dr. Lee? Tara Lee?” Dr. Bannock asked.

  “Yes. I understand you used to be her superior?” the major asked. “Is that correct?”

  “Yes, it is, Sir,” Dr. Bannock said. “She reported to me while on loan to the WHO in the Congo.”

  “And she was the first person to study the outbreak of the Vita virus? She was there at the source?”

  Dr. Bannock nodded. “Yes, indeed. I only wish she’d been more forthcoming about the virus from the very beginning.”

  “What do you mean?” Major Reed asked with a frown.

  Dr. Bannock hesitated before answering. “As her superior, it was Dr. Lee’s job to report her findings to me.”

  “Did she?”

  “Yes, she did, but her reports lacked vital information,” Dr. Bannock continued. “Information regarding the virulence and infection rate of the virus. By the time it mutated and began to spread, it was already too late to contain it.”

  “Are you saying she allowed it to spread on purpose?” the major asked with a doubtful note in his voice.

  “Not on purpose, Sir, but through negligence. Dr. Lee has always exhibited a lackadaisical approach to her work, and the Congo was no exception. I believe she wasn’t doing everything she should have and picked up on the severity of the situation too late. By then, there wasn’t much any of us could do,” Dr. Bannock said, carefully weaving fact with fiction.

  “I see. What more can you tell me about her?” the major asked.

  Dr. Bannock shrugged. “There isn’t much to tell. She was an average employee, at best. Nothing special. In fact, I believe if we’d sent someone else to study the virus at its origins, things might have turned out very differently. It’s something that plagues me to this day, and I feel I carry partial responsibility for the outbreak.”

  “If Dr. Lee is such an average scientist, how did she manage to discover a cure?” Major Reed asked, leaning forward in his chair.

  “Pure luck, I’d surmise,” Dr. Bannock said. “Luck, and the help of other scientists at Fort Knox.”

  “I don’t believe in luck, doctor.”

  Dr. Bannock shrugged. “She probably piggybacked off other’s work, and when the Fort fell, she saw an opportunity to claim all the credit.”

  “In other words, you don’t think she’s qualified to spearhead this research regarding a vaccine?” Major Reed questioned.

  “Spearhead, no. I’d suggest you put someone with more experience in charge, but she’s perfectly capable of doing basic research and taking notes. That sort of thing.”

  “And who would you suggest as the lead scientist?” the major asked with a wry smile. “Yourself?”

  “Certainly, Sir. I have many years of experience in the field,” Dr. Bannock said. “I am more than qualified for the job and would make a success of it.”

  “I will take your suggestion under advisement,” th
e major said before waving at Lieutenant King. “Do you have anything to report, Lieutenant?”

  “Yes, Sir. We received a report from Mount Weather regarding a severe storm coming our way,” Lieutenant King replied.

  “Mount Weather!” Bannock exclaimed. “Are they still operational?”

  “They are, and they report to all the bases and institutions that are still standing,” Lieutenant King replied. “Now, if I may continue?”

  “Oh, my apologies for interrupting. Please, proceed,” Dr. Bannock said, waving toward the lieutenant.

  “How severe will the storm be?” Major Reed asked.

  “Temperatures well below freezing, several inches of snow, and blizzard force winds, Sir.”

  “When will it hit us, and how long will it last?” the major asked.

  “Tomorrow afternoon, perhaps night, and it’s expected to last several days, Sir,” Lieutenant King said.

  The major thought for a few seconds before relaying his commands: “Make sure the men are equipped with adequate clothing and shelter against the cold. Even during a storm, we cannot afford to let our guard down, and patrols must continue. Fit all vehicles with snow chains.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  “Inform the civilians of the coming storm and instruct them to remain inside their houses. No one is to wander about the base without a valid reason. Everyone is to collect a week’s worth of rations tomorrow morning. That will have to last them until the worst is over. And tell Davis to make sure that all essential buildings have an uninterrupted supply of power. Even if it means having a team on standby.”

  “Yes, Sir.”

  “Once the storm hits, the base will go on lockdown until it passes. Understood?” the major asked.

  “Yes, Sir.”

  “Excellent. I will see you in the morning at the staff meeting. You can report back to me then. Dismissed,” the major said. “As for you, Dr. Bannock, we will talk again soon.”

  “Thank you, Sir. I look forward to meeting you again,” Dr. Bannock replied, shaking the major’s hand with vigor.